Xi Jinping Promotes Zhang Shuguang and Wang Gang to General After Anti-Corruption Purge

Chinese President Xi Jinping promoted two People’s Liberation Army officers to the rank of general during a ceremony in Beijing on Friday, as Beijing rebuilds a depleted top military command after anti-corruption purges.

“The Chinese army promoted two officers to the rank of general, in a move that paves the way for a broad leadership restructuring, after the dismissal of several of its leaders in a long-running anti-corruption campaign”

Al-Jazeera Net

State media reported that Xi promoted Zhang Shuguang, a veteran PLA anti-graft officer, and Wang Gang, commander of the PLA Air Force, and that Zhang Shuguang was also appointed head of the Central Military Commission’s discipline inspection commission.

Al-Jazeera Net

The promotions come as the Central Military Commission’s seven-member lineup has been reduced to two serving members, with Xi as chairman and Vice Chair Zhang Shengmin as the only other active member.

WKNO FM said the shake-up may be a precursor to a reorganization at the top following the removal of several leaders in a long-running anti-corruption drive, and it described the effort as ensuring the military’s loyalty to the ruling Communist Party and to Xi Jinping.

The Times of India framed the appointments as a precursor to broader reorganisation at the top and part of Xi’s efforts to reinforce military loyalty to the Communist Party, while noting that the CMC is expected to be replaced or renewed after the next Communist Party congress expected in 2027.

Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption push has also included political retraining for senior PLA officers, and Nikkei Asia (Reuters) reported that Xi told officers in April that "All thoughts and actions of seeking private gain and corruption are fundamentally incompatible with the party's nature and purpose."

Nikkei Asia said Zhang Shuguang replaces Zhang Shengmin as the military’s top anti-graft watchdog, with Zhang Shengmin having held the post since 2017 even after being promoted to the CMC vice chairman in 2025.

CBS News

The Star reported that Zhang Shuguang became secretary of the Central Military Commission’s discipline inspection commission and that Wang Gang is now commander of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force, with both men promoted to the rank of general.

The Star also said Zhang Shengmin is now vice chairman of the CMC, and it added that it remains unclear what role former Air Force Commander Chang Dingqiu will take next.

In the same period, the sources described the CMC’s reduced leadership core as Xi and Zhang Shengmin, while the promotions are expected to position Zhang Shuguang and Wang Gang to fill vacancies on the seven-member commission depleted by corruption investigations.

The sources tie the latest promotions to a longer timeline for rebuilding the CMC, with WKNO FM saying a new commission is expected to be announced in the fall of next year at the end of the current commission’s five-year term.

“The news came in the form of two particularly cryptic paragraphs on Thursday, May 7, on the Xinhua News Agency's wire: two former Chinese defense ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, were sentenced to death for corruption and attempted corruption”

Courrier international

Nikkei Asia (Reuters) similarly said the current CMC lineup was named in October 2022 and is expected to be replaced or renewed after the Communist Party's next five-yearly congress, likely to take place in autumn 2027.

The Star described Xi’s campaign as the country’s biggest military purge in half a century, saying Xi launched it in mid-2023 and that he has ousted two vice military chairs, three CMC members, a former defence minister and at least a dozen senior generals.

Le Grand Continent said the investigation announced on January 24, 2026 by the Chinese Ministry of Defense involved Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, and it described the decision as a signal of zero tolerance and an expansion of the anti-corruption campaign with no zones off-limits.

EL PAÍS reported that a PLA Daily editorial accused Zhang and Liu of undermining Xi Jinping’s authority, quoting it as "They trampled and seriously undermined the accountability system of the president of the Central Military Commission," and it also cited a Pentagon assessment that investigations are "very likely to disrupt the PLA's short-term operational effectiveness."